MURSILIS I

also spelled Murshilish (fl. 16th century BC) Hittite king during the Old Kingdom (reigned c. 1620c. 1590 BC). Mursilis was the adopted heir of his grandfather, Hattusilis I, whom he succeeded on the throne. He first continued his predecessor's campaigns in northern Syria, destroying Aleppo and delivering the final blow to Mari. He then turned eastward, and by raiding Babylon he put an end to the Amorite dynasty there. This event, recorded in Babylonian sources, firmly linked Hittite chronology with that of Babylonia. Mursilis also fought the Hurrians on the upper Euphrates River and returned to his capital, Hattusas (modern Bogazky, in Turkey), with rich booty and many captives. Soon after his return, however, he was killed in a palace conspiracy planned by his brother-in-law Hantilis.